Shania Twain Opens Up About Her Relationship with Frédéric Thiébaud

Looks like she made it: More than a year since her split from her husband Robert “Mutt” Lange, Shania Twain once again took to her Web site Friday evening to show everyone she’s doing well.

As a gift to her fans on her own Aug. 28 birthday, the singer, who just turned 44, posted a nearly 15-minute video travelogue of her past year.

While it doesn’t include any new music, the montage does show the country star laughing it up while skydiving and riding camels in Egypt.

Along with the video – which she posted because “I want you to see for yourself that we are doing fine” – Twain penned another very personal letter, in the same open spirit as her June 12 message to fans.

“I feel very alive and well, ready to take on the gift of another year,” writes Twain, whose marriage to Lange fell apart in May 2008 following his affair with her best friend, Marie-Anne Thiébaud, a longtime secretary and manager of the couple’s chateau in Switzerland.

A Dear Friend

Helping the country star through the tough times? The love and support of her friends and family – and Thiébaud’s ex-husband, Frédéric Thiébaud.

He and Twain continue to prompt plenty of speculation about their relationship, after being recently spotted vacationing with her family – including her son Eja, 8 – at her lakefront cottage in Canada. The two also went on a Manhattan shopping spree and a trip to Florida last December.

Referring to him as “a dear friend and true gentleman,” Twain writes, “[He] has been the most constant companion and support for both Eja and I. And having gone through the suffering of his family splitting apart at the same time and under the same extreme circumstances, he understands me better than anyone.”

The singer adds: “We leaned on one another through the ups and downs, taking turns holding each other up. We’ve become stronger and closer through it all, as have our children, Eja and Johanna, Fred’s 8-year-old daughter.”

Travel Adventures

Joined by each of their children, Twain and Fred went on several trips together. Thiébaud shot their antics on his cell phone.

“Fred filmed and snapped away during the travel adventures of the last six months, capturing the dreams becoming reality,” writes Twain. “The home footage is full of happy faces, beautiful, interesting places and lots of horses.”

“Be ready to see a lot of me without makeup, no touch ups and bad hair and looking pretty goofy,” she says. “There is no glamour, but plenty of genuine smiles.”

Shania Twain and Framp#233;damp#233;ric Thiamp#233;baud

Todd G/John Kennedy/Splash News Online

Though Twain does not clarify whether she and Thiébaud are an item – despite the rings each was seen wearing while relaxing in Canada, her rep says the pair are neither engaged nor married – she does tease fans with a cute clue.

“Fred and I have certainly had a lot of laughs through the months,” she says. “And while sharing these images with a very good friend of mine after each trip, she now affectionately refers to us as Lucy and Ricky Ricardo.”

Twain continues her return to the spotlight on Sunday, when she heads to Chicago to be a guest judge for American Idol during their auditions on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1.

“Yeah, when I reflect on it all,” writes Twain, who says her experiences are inspiring her songwriting, “it’s clear how remarkably active my life has been since last December, a time in the life of someone working hard to ‘move on’ and succeeding.”